No one understands how one’s political fortunes can turn better than New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson. A longtime Clintonista who served as a U.N. ambassador and energy secretary, Richardson apparently committed anathema in casting his lot with Sen. Barack Obama, rather than Sen. Hillary Clinton, for the Democratic presidential nomination.

It certainly earned him the enmity of Clinton loyalist James Carville, the no-prisoners strategist who masterminded Bill Clinton’s spot-on, “It’s the economy, stupid” campaign.

Ragin’ Cajun

They don’t call Carville “The Ragin’ Cajun” for nothing. On Good Friday, no less, he declared that Richardson’s decision was an “act of betrayal” and that all that was missing was 30 pieces of silver.

So, if Richardson is Judas, then “Jesus” is, um ...

The rift between the Clinton and Obama camps has grown so bitter that, according to a Gallup Poll, 19 percent to 28 percent of Democrats plan to cast a “revenge vote” for Sen. John McCain if their candidate doesn’t get the nomination.

Remember a few short months ago, when Democrats were bragging about their big tent and how there was plenty of room for two candidates?

How did “Kumbaya” turn into hara-kiri?

Going deep

What if Jimmy Hoffa wasn’t kidnapped? What if he just hit a pothole on Tuscarawas Street?

God bless ’em for trying, but this winter, Canton had chuckholes so deep that Chinese signposts were found in the bellies of three of them.

Last month, a pilot flying into Akron-Canton Airport thought he had been blown off course after mistaking a pothole for a volcano crater.

Because asphalt vanishes from Canton’s streets like Freedom Fries from a fat camp, perhaps it’s time we seriously consider reverting those streets that have a 25-mph speed limit back to the paving bricks.

The people who are paid to know about such things say asphalt is a cheap and flexible solution; but asphalt is made with oil, so how much longer before it’ll be cheaper just to stuff the holes with dollar bills?

They also point out that maintaining brick streets can be labor-intensive. Fine. It’s a ready-made project for Mayor Healy’s new teen job-training program.

Brick streets also serve as a nod to our history as the nation’s largest brick manufacturer in the 1800s. They can serve as a daily reminder of how great this city can be.